Pool goes to the dogs for humane society fundraiser

By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on September 3, 2024.

Herald photo by Al Beeber Dogs shake off some water after a refreshing swim during the Lethbridge & District Humane Society's annual fundraiser Paws in the Pool on Sunday at Westminster Pool.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com

Animal rescues and shelters are bursting at the seams including the Lethbridge and District Humane Society which every given day is receiving as many as 15 calls from people wanting to surrender their unwanted pets.

But the society, like other rescue organizations, doesn’t have room anymore, its ability to help find new homes for those already in its care being put to the test as numbers of unwanted animals grow.

Paying for that care was the focus of the annual Paws in the Pool fundraiser Sunday at Westminster Pool in north Lethbridge where dog owners could frolic in the water with their four-legged companions on the last day of the pool’s operation for the season.

Dozens of animals and their humans participated in the event which featured a fundraising barbecue and silent auction. Dogs of all ages and sizes either swam in the main pool or hung out with new and old canine friends in the kiddies’ pool as lifeguards watched over the affair.

Barb Grodzicky of the society said every fundraiser is important with Sunday’s being one of the most fun for the organization.

“Everybody likes it, lots of dogs out,” said Grodnzicky. The gates opened at 10 a.m. for the six-hour event and people were lined up to give a minimum $10 donation so their dogs could make a splash.

“The animal situation, the cat and dog situation, I feel is the worst it’s been in 20 years. It’s the worst I’ve ever seen it, it’s terrible,” said Grodzicky.

She says part of the reason for the increasing numbers is due to the COVID pandemic when people took in animals and perhaps they were feeling overwhelmed and began surrendering their cats and dogs.

“We’re full all the time, we’re overfilled with both,” she said of the cats and dogs housed at the society’s northside facility.

“You can’t take them all, there’s nowhere to put them,” she said of unwanted animals.

Adopting an animal from a rescue organization, Grodzicky said, gives dogs a deserved a home.

“The dogs really didn’t do anything to deserve being homeless so by adopting from a rescue or an animal shelter, you’re making room for another one to be helped so it can find its forever home, too,” said Grodzicky.

The Humane Society works with people to make sure an animal is the right fit for a family with potential adopters getting full information about the pets they’re interested in.

When buying a dog off an online ad, people sometimes a few weeks later will be trying to re-home a dog because of the lack of that information.

“So rescues are working with the family to make sure it’s a good fit and the dog isn’t too much for them which is why sometimes they’re looking for a home already again.”